About David

David Sampson (b. 1951, Charlottesville, Virginia) has emerged as one of the truly unique voices of his generation. He was Composer-in-Residence with the Colonial Symphony Orchestra from 1998 through 2007. He was a recipient a 2014 New Jersey State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship.

His major works include The War Prayer for soloists, chorus and orchestra commissioned by the National Endowment for the Arts and premiered by Princeton Pro Musica; Hommage JFK commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra; Monument commissioned by the Barlow Foundation for the Akron and Memphis symphony orchestras; Turns forCello and Orchestra commissioned by the Bergen Foundation and cellist Paul Tobias and premiered with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra; Triptych for trumpet and orchestra commissioned by the International Trumpet Guild and premiered by Raymond Mase at the Aspen Music Festival and with the American Composers Orchestra at Carnegie Hall; Dectet commissioned by the Chicago Chamber Musicians; Elements commissioned by the Elements Quartet; Strata commissioned by the NEA and the American Brass Quintet; Jersey Rain commissioned by the NEA and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and premiered by Harmonium and Masterworks Choruses and the Colonial Symphony.

Other works include Breathing Lessons for saxophone quartet commissioned by Chamber Music America for the Amherst Saxophone Quartet, Three Portraits for tuba and orchestra commissioned by Scott Mendoker; Short Stories commissioned by Chamber Music America

and the Pew Charitable Trusts; Elements commissioned by the Elements Quartet; Four Winds commissioned by the Chelsea Chamber Ensemble; Moving Parts written for the Randolph Wind Ensemble, David Aulenbach, conductor; Double Back for trumpet, trombone and wind ensemble premiered by Rex Richardson, Joseph Alessi and the VCU Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Terry Austin, director; and Simple Lives commissioned by the Colonial Symphony.

Mase, trumpet; Scott Mendoker, tuba; (Summit Records DCD237); Short Stories (Dorian Wind Quintet, Summit Records); Morning Music and Distant Voices (American Brass Quintet, Summit Records); Reflections on a Dance (Summit Brass, Summit Records); The Mysteries Remain and Solo (Raymond Mase, Summit Records); and Chants and Flourishes (American Brass Quintet). Moving Parts for wind ensemble was recorded by both the North Texas Wind Ensemble, Eugene Corporan, conductor and the Rutgers Wind Ensemble, William Berz, conductor. His Serenade for flugelhorn and string orchestra was recorded by the Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra with Raymond Mase as soloist and Paul Polivnick conducting; and his Dectet was recorded by the Wihan Quartet, Afflatus Wind Quintet and pianist Richard Ormrod with Paul Polivnick conducting. The album Dectet (Troy 780) was released on Albany Records. Chesapeake (DCD 639), released on Summit Records September, 2014 includes works written for the American Brass Quintet as a group and as members of various chamber ensembles. The most recent release on Summit Records is Notes From Faraway Places(DCD 681), a collection of works written between 1980 and 2015.

David Sampson has received major grants from the NEA, American Academy of Arts and Letters, Chamber Music America, Barlow Endowment, New Jersey State Council on the Arts, Jerome Foundation, Cary Trust, and the Dodge Foundation, among others. He holds degrees from the Curtis Institute of Music, Hunter College, Manhattan School of Music, and the Ecoles d’Art Americaines, where his teachers included Karel Husa, Henri Dutilleux and John Corigliano in composition; and Gerard Schwarz, Gilbert Johnson, Robert Nagel, and Raymond Mase in trumpet. His music is published by Editions BIM, Cantate Press and Redrunner Music. He has served on the Board of the Composers Guild of New Jersey and the Advisory Board of the Bergen Foundation.